WASHINGTON, June 23, 2006
GOP Optimistic On Senate Races
Hopes To Retain Control, Despite 'Challenging' 2006 Political Climate
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GOP eyes have a close watch on the re-election race of U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D, Mich.) and the U.S. Senate race of N.J. Republican State Sen. Tom Kean Jr., son of the former governor. (AP)
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After Democrat Jim Webb became his party's nominee in the race against Virginia Sen. George Allen last week, the Democrats' Senate campaign chairman, Charles Schumer, was elated, listing eight states he thinks they can pick up from Republicans this November.
The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) says not so fast, however, as they battle to maintain their majority, which currently stands at 6 seats.
As CBS News reported last week, in order for the Democrats to have any shot at taking over the Senate, they first have to win most, if not all, of the 18 seats they're defending – 7 of which may turn out to be competitive.
Among the races on the NRSC's "target" list are:
In addition to successfully defending those seats, the Democrats would also have to take at least 6 seats from the Republicans, 8 of which are viable, according to Schumer.
Those eight are: Arizona, Missouri, Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Virginia.
As expected, the Republicans minimized the competitiveness of most of those eight seats, except for two: Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.
Regarding Pennsylvania, the NRSC concedes that incumbent Sen. Rick Santorum faces a tough fight against moderate Democratic State Treasurer Bob Casey Jr., the son of a popular former governor. Santorum's problem? "He's a vocal conservative in a not-so-conservative state," said the NRSC official. Ever the optimists, the NRSC made sure to point out Casey's prior blown lead in the 2002 gubernatorial primary.
And in Rhode Island, the NRSC isn't shy about pointing out that "the real election is September 12," the day that Republican Sen. Lincoln Chafee faces a primary challenge from Cranston Mayor Steve Laffey. Current polls show the two neck-and-neck and if the moderate Chafee winds up losing, the conservative Laffey is widely expected to not have much of a chance of winning in November in the overwhelmingly Democratic Ocean State.
The National Republican Senatorial Committee is very pleased with the position it is in right now, despite what's seen as an extremely negative climate facing GOP candidates: bad Bush poll numbers, the war in Iraq, and high gas prices.
NRSC communications director Brian Nick said, "This is been an incredibly challenging political environment in which we've bee able to recruit outstanding candidates across the country and increase our fundraising."
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